Captain America #263
The Last Movie!
Captain America has just found himself a prisoner of the Red Skull, during his latest scheme to destroy his arch nemesis. Locked in a cell with the Ameridroid, the Red Skull reveals how he manipulated the android into helping him to make up for Lyle Dekker’s failed attempt to kill Captain America during the war.[1] The Red Skull details how he and Dekker worked together to create a new Nomad to lure Captain America to California and used his operatives in the Nihilist Order to discredit the Avenger at the same time.[2] Now with everything going to plan, the Red Skull intends to kill his hated enemy.
Using a remote control, the Skull shows how he has full control of the Ameridroid and forces Dekker to attack the real Captain America. Cap goes on the defensive and pleads Lyle to fight off the Red Skull’s influence. This works and Dekker turns on the Red Skull and tries to push his way through the Skull’s protective force field. He succeeds, but is seemingly killed in the process. This gives an opening for Captain America to hurl his shield at his foe. The weapon hits the “Skull” in the head, shattering it and revealing that this is actually a robot duplicate. A drone broadcasting the image of the real Red Skull dares Captain America to untangle his many lies to find him.
Meanwhile, back at Galaxy Studios, the body of Eddie Farbel — the man the Red Skull hired to be the new Nomad and later murdered — is being carted away. On the scene is reporter Will Brynner who is using this opportunity to slander Captain America on live television. However, Cap had informed the LAPD of Brynner’s membership in the Nihilist Order and he is arrested while still on the air, exposing the Red Skull’s deception and undoing all the damage done to Captain America’s reputation.
As Captain America searches for the Red Skull in the backlot of Galaxy Pictures, Leonard Spellman is informed that the recent negative publicity surrounding Captain America has led the studio to the decision to scrap production on the Captain America film and opt for a television documentary instead. This is just moments after Brynner’s arrest and the media’s sudden 360 on Captain America.
Meanwhile, Captain America has just defeated the remaining members of the Nihilist Order and is led to the Red Skull by yet another robotic duplicate. Cap is surprised to be lead to the head office for Galactic Pictures. As it turns out, the entire operation was a front for the Red Skull. The Nazi explains how he has been manipulating events in order to have a documentary about Captain America be made for television as part of a grand scheme to bring down America once and for all. He reveals that the copy of the film he gave to the television network has a hypnotic message hidden in it that will spark riots and racial violence all over the country. This revelation makes Captain America lose his temper and attack the Red Skull, but this turns out to be yet another robot duplicate.
That’s when the Ameridroid comes crashing into the office and smashes through a fake wall revealing the Red Skull’s secret control room. The furious android then tackles the Red Skull, sending them both crashing into the complex machinery and the pair are seemingly killed in the ensuing explosion.[3][4] With no time to lose, Captain America races to the MBC television studio and manages to stop one of the technicians from airing the copy of his documentary. To make sure it isn’t played, Cap destroys it, thereby saving America from plunging into total anarchy.
The next day, the Red Skull’s foiled scheme has made front page news. Leonard Spellman, his nephew Wally Lombergo, and actor Jason Staid are disappointed over being tricked like this and worry about finding future work. Still, they are glad Captain America exposed the Skull’s scheme. Captain America is just happy to be taking a flight home and hopes that he is kept out of whatever project Spellman gets into next.
Recurring Characters
Captain America, Red Skull, Ameridroid, Edward Farbel, Leonard Spellman, Wally Lombergo, Jason Staid
Continuity Notes
The whole Lyle Dekker/Ameridroid “saga” (if you want to call it that) was chronicled in Captain America #219-221.
Steve mentions how the Committee to Regain America’s Principals tried a similar scheme to ruin his career. This is in reference to the time Steve Rogers gave up being Captain America when he discovered that the President of the United States was the leader of the Secret Empire and witnessed the Commander-in-Chief blow his brains out in the Oval Office circa Captain America #169-175. He then reinvented himself as Nomad until his replacement —- Roscoe Simmons — was murdered by the Red Skull, forcing Steve back in the role. See Captain America #176-186.
Although the Ameridroid appears to be destroyed here, it will return again in Captain America (vol. 6) #2-3.
The Red Skull also survives this attempt on his life and he will turn up again in Captain America #293-301, which his survival being explained in Captain America #298.
Topical References
It is stated here that World War II happened fourty years prior to this story. This should be considered a topical reference. This is due to the fact that the Sliding Timescale pushes the Modern Age forward in time, expanding the gulf of time between the end of World War II and the start of the Modern Age.
The televisions in this story are depicted as CRTs that have knobs and dials and need antenna to pick up signals. I don’t need to explain to you how this is obsolete.
Also from the “old as shit technology that should be considered topical” the Captain America documentary is depicted as being recorded on a film reel and that the studio needs to run it through a projector. In the world of digital video this is technology has long since been replaced in both film and television.
The Red Skull states in this story that he was offended by the following documentaries:
Roots: A 1977 mini-series that told the story of slavery in America. It was a smash hit in the ratings when it first aired.
Holocaust: Another historical mini-series that aired in 1978 that told the story of a Jewish family surviving the Nazi concentration camps. While also a critical hit, it was also panned by the Jewish community for being tawdry exploitation.
The references to these mini-series should be considered topical.
